soul is not seen, either in the zeal, love, purity, or the obedience of his people; nor does he behold it in the accession to his spiritual kingdom of millions of heathen brought into it through the instrumentality of the church. He is not satisfied, for nothing less can satisfy his infinite desires, his divine compassion, than the united efforts of his people, and the conversion of the world. While these difficulties exist, they stop his chariot wheels in the career of conquest. The everlasting gospel is not preached to every creature— the angel does not fly through the midst of heaven proclaiming its joyful message to every kindred, and people, and tongue. With whom does the blame rest? Oh, it is an overwhelming thought that the guilt rests on the professing church of Christ.

But a solemn question presents itself, and demands an answer-What have been the consequences of this state of things in the church of Christ? How has it affected the exertions of Christians with reference to the heathen? We would reply, that deep injury has resulted-that it has kept down the missionary spirit, and prevented the application of the moral power of the church to the necessities of the world. Bear with me for a few moments while I appeal to facts in confirmation of the correctness of the observations which I have just made.

Numerous as have been the efforts of Christians during the last forty years, and presenting as they do a striking contrast to the apathy of former generations; yet they have been few and imperfect compared either with the ability of the church, or the claims of the heathen. Looking at the magnitude of the object, and remembering that eternity is stamped upon it

that it involves the happiness of hundreds of millions of human beings for ever; one feels ashamed at the small amount of Christian influence that has been made by the church of Christ. If we look at the amount of money contributed year after year, we find that all the Christians of Britain give less to the missionary cause, than is annually spent by the votaries of pleasure in their pursuit of theatrical amusements in London alone. Again, how humbling and affecting is the thought, that all that has been expended by all the great and noble religious institutions of the whole of Christendom during the last forty years, would not pay for the ardent spirits consumed in one year in Great Britain even. The calculation I have made of the amount collected, since Bible, missionary, and tract societies began their operations, brings the whole up to fifteen millions; while the cost of ardent spirits to the consumer, is every year above twenty millions of pounds. Thus for mere indulgence-for that which is not a necessary of life, but injurious to life; and the cause of unmingled misery and wo to thousands of families-more is spent every year, than all denominations of Christians in the world have expended for forty years in evangelizing the heathen! Alas for Christian zeal and Christian liberality. Could this have been so, had all religious professors, had all real Christians done their duty to God and to their fellow creatures? Impossible! And there is another affecting consideration connected with these remarksthat it is chiefly the poor; those who with difficulty can earn enough to sustain their families, who have spent all this money.

Once more, if we look at the number of Bibles

distributed, we find that the whole which have been circulated by the direct and indirect efforts of the Bible Society, and all foreign Bible Societies, would just supply the population of Great Britain and Ireland if they were all able to read. And though about fifteen millions of Bibles and Testaments have been distributed, only half a million have found their way into heathen lands. Neither have these been scattered through the breadth and length of the pagan world, but confined chiefly to some favored spots, leaving hundreds of millions without any copies of the Scriptures at all. Thus while we admit with joy and gratitude, that through the instrumentality of missionaries, the Bible has been translated into languages spoken by more than half the population of the globe; yet even with this circumstance in their favor, and years to enable Christians to publish and spread through heathen lands the living oracles, only a number that London itself would require, if its reading population should all be furnished with a copy of the Bible, has been circulated among six hundred millions of human beings.

Again, if we examine the operations of missionary societies, the result is equally distressing. At the present time, about one thousand European and American missionaries occupy the heathen field, which is about three missionaries to every two millions; or in the proportion of about twenty ministers for the whole of England. Since these societies began, not more than two thousand missionaries have been sent forth by the Christian church. And is this all that the church has done for hundreds of millions of immortal beings? We have furnished a far larger number to our little

island, and the world has been comparatively overlooked. All our zeal and devotedness for the conversion of men has supplied as many ministers for six hundred millions, as are to be found in the county of York! Need we wonder that so little impression has been made on heathen nations. Look again at the direct influence which these devoted missionaries have upon the heathen. It is a large calculation to say that their instructions reach directly and indirectly ten millions of pagans. Here then, five hundred and ninety millions are literally uninfluenced by the ministry of reconciliation. The actual congregations of all Protestant missionaries do not amount to one million, and if we allow fifty thousand persons for all those who are in church fellowship, we shall exceed the real amount. This gives one hearer of the gospel to every six hundred of the human family, and one professed Christian man to every twelve thousand individuals. This then is the result of all the missionary efforts of the Christian church during the last forty years! But even this view is too favorable as far as one country is concerned. In China, containing one half of the heathen population of the globe, there is not one native convert to thirty millions of immortal beingsnot above ten individuals, among the three hundred millions to be found in that teeming empire, who are the servants of the only living and only true God.

Often has it been declared by missionaries, that their chief hope in heathen lands, was in the rising generation. The adult population seemed beyond the reach of Christian instruction and moral influence, so that with few exceptions, the millions of the present generation will linger out their dreary existence and

perish forever, shall I say, the victims of the neglect of the Christian church. What a miserable prospect for them, and how deeply affecting should such a consideration be to us. But even this hope respecting the rising generation, which missionaries so fondly cherish, is presumption, unless means are used to instruct them not merely in the art of reading, but in direct religious knowledge. The missionaries are convinced of this. Christian schools have been formed at every station, and their time and talents have been exercised in promoting this desirable object. What has been the result? If the rising generation among the heathen is not to perish, as well as the present generation, at least one hundred millions of children should be placed under the influence of Christian schools. Even if this were done, it would only be a sixth part of the heathen population placed in circumstances favorable to the reception of Divine knowledge. But what is the actual number in all the schools of all the missionary stations? The highest estimate that we can make is one hundred and fifty thousand scholars, or about one in every six hundred of the children that should be under Christian instruction; five hundred and ninety-nine of every six hundred being allowed to grow up in ignorance and sin, and preparing, by forming habits of iniquity, to reject the pure and self-denying doctrines of the gospel, if peradventure, in thirty or forty years, missionaries may be sent to them. Where is our hope then even of the children of the heathen, when these things are so? At this rate, when will the evangelization of the world be effected?

Let us include in our estimate, all the other means